Freshfel Europe, Europe's fresh produce association, launched its Fresh Quality Guide for the fresh produce sector in February and attracted 10,000 visitors in its first two months on-line.
The guide constitutes the first compilation of European legislation applicable to food quality and safety for the marketing of fresh fruits and vegetables in the EU. Freshfel said: “From our experiences in the industry, operators have two main problems concerning legislative requirements; sources and interpretation. As a multitude of legislation is applicable to produce marketed in the EU, ranging from that of the EU itself to that of the Codex Alimentarius, elucidating such requirements is problematic.
“Moreover, the inclusion into the EU of 10 new member states in May represents a challenge for operators in these countries to cope with the complex legislative requirements of the EU. By collecting these requirements, both in their original, legislative form and in an easy-reading format, Freshfel Europe has successfully addressed this problem.”
Freshfel reports “very positive feedback”. Many governments and public administrative bodies have lent support to the project, and regularly use the guide as a source of reference, highlighting its credibility within the sector. “With further updates constantly made the Fresh Quality Guide is rapidly becoming the first source of market requirements within the sector,” said Freshfel. The Guide can be found at www.freshquality.com.
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